This is a lead soldier - Warrant Officer from the Afrikakorps 1942 was manufactured by DelPrado in 2000. I found this in a antique exposision in last June. Here goes the pictures (click on images to see it big):

Saturday, October 22, 2011

German was an early exponent of armoured cars, partly because, unlike tanks, they were not restrited by the Versailes Treaty, and they were a cheap and quick way of mechanising the Army and giving industry experience of building vehicles to military specifications. The multy-wheeled German armoured cars resulted from studies using trucks with drive on four rear wheels to achieve a good cross-country performance.

Sunday, March 20, 2011

Hans-Karl Asmus Werner Freiherr von Esebeck (10 July 1892 – 5 January 1955) was a German General who commanded the 15th Panzer Division in the AfrikaKorps. He was also a conspirator against Adolf Hitler.

Von Esebeck had knowledge of and was sympathetic to the anti-Hitler conspiracy. He was arrested on 21 July 1944 and spent the rest of the war in concentration camps. Liberated at the end of the war he lived the rest of his life in poverty and died on 5 January 1955.

Thursday, March 17, 2011

Model build over a period of about 10 weeks. Over 70 hours were spent painting the final DAK scheme to depict a vehicle which would have been well used in North Africa. Armortek are a UK based Company supplying probably the best 1/6th scale radio control models on the market today.

Monday, March 14, 2011

He was a Rommel's Artillery Group Commander and was in charge of several divisions during World War II. He was also a recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross. The Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross was awarded to recognise extreme battlefield bravery or successful military leadership. Karl Böttcher was captured by the Western Allies in 1945 and was held until 1947.

The 105MM (4.13in) leFH18 (leichte FeldHaubitze "light field howitzer") was the standard German divisional field-piece used throughout the World War II; it was designed by Rheinmetall in 1929/30 and went into service in 1935. A good, sound, orthodox design, it used a split trail with folding spades and a hydro-pneumatic recoil system split above and below the barrel, but retained a wooden or pressed-steel wheels and was mostly horse-drawn for all its life. However it was so solidly put together that it was rather heavy, and unable to be as mobile as the army would have liked. Although augmented by improved models in 1939/45, it remained in use and was kept in service by several European armies for some years after the war ended.

Calibre:

105mm (4.13in)

Weight in action:

1985Kg (4376lb)

Gun lenght:

24.8 calibre: 2.61m (102.7in)

Elevation:

-6.5º to +40.5º

Traverse:

56º

Shell type & weight:

HE (High Explosive); 14.81Kg (32.65lb)

Muzzle velocity:

470m/sec (1542ft/sec

Maximum range:

10675m (11.675yds)

"It had a heavy, simple breech mechanism with a hydro-pneumatic recoil system. The 10.5 cm leFH 18 had wood-spoked or pressed steel wheels. The former were only suitable for horse traction. Initially, it was not fitted with a muzzle brake. In 1941 a muzzle brake was fitted to allow longer range charges to be fired. This increased the range by about 1,800 yards and was known as the leFH 18M. In March 1942 a requirement was issued for a lighter howitzer. This led to a second modification, known as the leFH 18/40. This modification consisted of mounting the barrel of an leFH 18M on the carriage for a 7.5 cm PaK 40 antitank gun. The new carriage increased the rate of fire as well as making the howitzer lighter. Additionally, a more efficient muzzle brake was added, decreasing the recoil. Ballistically, the 10.5 cm leFH 18M and the leFH 18/40 are identical."

Wednesday, February 9, 2011

Rommel was the first General to use the Volkswagen during the military operation in France. He was so impresed by it that he, afterwards, when he was in charge of the Afrika Korps, reordered an ever increasing nunber of these vehicles. The Kübelwagen distinguished itself immediatly by is enormous efficiency on all kind of terrain, in spite of its small horse power (hardly 24 HP) and the drive on the rear-wheels only.

The 8th Army front extended from Gazala to Bir Hacheim and was interlaced with huge minefields of a scale and complexity never encountered before. Behind this line loomed the strongly defended boxes of Knightsbridge and El Adem and finally Tobruk, occupied by experienced desert fighters. Even Rommel underestimated the strength of the forces mustered here. However, within 3 weeks of opening his offensive, Rommel would reduce this magnificent British army to a state of complete rout.

Tuesday, February 8, 2011

The original was a BMW R75, first produced in Germany in 1941 specifically for military use, primarily used with a SideCar. These military motorcycles were so reliable and successful (as also past/future models) in all climates from freezing snow to blistering desert that replica spin-offs were produced by disassembly and replication of captured BMWs in many other countries such as Russia, Korea, Japan, & China (many of these survived the war and are in museums).

Erbo von Kageneck was born on the 2th of April 1918, in the rhenische estate of his grandfather baron Clemens Schorlemer, Lieser. Erbo was just a pet name for his rather unusual first name. He was named after one of his ancestors, Arbogast, who was a knight of Xth century.

Saturday, January 8, 2011

January 29 1942 after the Bengazi's fall Rommel reaches the at Bomba's golf and to Ain el Gazala's line. At May 26. The Axis forces consists in the 15st e 31st Panzer Divisions (320 combat vehicles), the Italian Division Ariete (240 combat vehicles), the Italian Division Trieste and a German Motorized Division. The Axis forces wait for the arrive of second Italian Division; the Littorio.

During his campaigns in Africa, Field Marshal Erwin Rommel, "The Desert Fox," himself made repeated trips back to Berlin due to illness. As evinced by newsreels showing Rommel often with a handkerchief to his nose, Rommel suffered from nasal diphtheria. Reported Rommel's medical advisor in August 1942:

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